Taiwo Popoola
The arrested and detained EndBadGovernance protesters have demanded vacation of the orders of the Federal high court, Abuja, which permitted the Inspector General of Police to detain them for 60 days pending the conclusion of investigation.
In a motion on notice dated the 26th day of August, 2024, through a consortium of human rights lawyers led by foremost human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, they demanded that the order of the court be set aside, discharged and vacated outrightly for them to be set free.
The ex-parte order for their 60 days detention was made on the 22nd day of August, 2024 by Justice Emeka Nwite in a Suit with no: FHC/ABJ/CS/1233/2024 between the IGP and Comrade Opaluwa Eleojo & 48 others.
The 49 protesters clamped into police custody on detention maintained that neither the IGP nor President Bola Tinubu have right to arrest them on account of exercising their fundamental rights to object to policy of government exposing them to hardships.
They cited several protests in the past led by Tinubu without any harassment, molestation, arrest or detention insisting that Tinubu is the biggest beneficiary of protests and dissent in the country.
In an affidavit in support of their motion deposed to by one Paul Ochayi, the protesters maintained that protest is a right and that President Tinubu had led protests in the past without being harassed, detained or remanded.
They also challenged the remand orders on the ground that Justice Nwite who issued them had no jurisdiction to grant the ex-parte order he made pursuant to section 299 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015.
Meanwhile, no date has yet been fixed for hearing of the motion by the court.
It has however been served on the Inspector General of Police for his response as required by law.
